Protectors
by rachelhowellbooks
Summary: After a long day at work, Gibbs heads home, hoping to get some work done at home. But, his plans change when he finds a Marine Lieutenant dead with a girl tied up beside him. Now, the team must solve the murder of the lieutenant before he strikes again.
1. Chapter 1

**I DO NOT OWN CBS! I DO NOT OWN NCIS**

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Gibbs sighed as he turned onto his street. Today was one of the longest days they had in years. The team had no cases, so instead, they filed old cases. Gibbs lowered his brow as his gut churned inside his stomach. "Something isn't right," he mumbled. His heart began to beat faster, and he reached towards his glove box and opened it. He pulled out his .9-millimeter pistol.

 _ **BANG!**_

Gibbs instantly stopped the car and got out of it. He turned off his safety and another gunshot filled the air. He began to run towards the sound which was inside a small one-story. Gibbs ran up the steps and stood in front of the door. A scream filled the air and Gibbs kicked down the door. Gibbs pulled up his gun and began to search the house. "Hello?"

A faint scream came from the back of the house. Gibbs began to make his way down the hall and spotted a door slightly open. The muffled scream became louder and Gibbs began to walk faster. He kicked the door open more and looked around. Gibbs's eyes widened as he spotted a teenage girl tied up to a chair, blood dripping down her face, and tears fell down her bloodied face. She screamed again but a rag wrapped around her mouth muffled her screams. In front of her laid a dead man wearing a lieutenant uniform. _Just when I thought I would have no cases today._

….

"What is it, boss? I was just about to head home when you called." Agent Torres stopped in his tracks and his eyes widened, "Woah."

"This is crazy," McGee said as he blinked several times.

"Is Ducky and Palmer coming?" Gibbs scowled.

"They are walking in right now," Bishop softly smiled.

"Ah… I haven't seen anything like this since the time I was in-"

"Ducky, not now," Gibbs growled. "I need you to treat this patient, while Palmer works with the lieutenant."

The teenage girl let the tears fall down her face as Ducky sat in front of her. "May I ask what your name is?"

"Marine. Marine Balker."

Bishop raised her eyebrows, "Marine?"

Marine nodded and looked down at her hands, "My father is… was… in the Marine Corps. My mom wanted to name me after her hero. So, they named me after my dad's job."

"I think it is a beautiful name," Ducky smiled.

"Thank you," Marine said weakly.

"How old are you?" Gibbs asked.

"14… almost 15…" she whimpered. Ducky grabbed a small rag and began to clean the blood from her face.

Torres squatted down next to Palmer, "Looks like he had a tough fight."

"He was tied up like me," Marine cried. "They beat him and beat him and beat him. He wouldn't tell them anything. So they… they…"

Gibbs placed his hand on her shoulder, "You don't need to tell us anything right now."

Ducky set the rag down next to him, "Yes, and once I clean you up. We will take you to our headquarters."

Marine nodded as she cried, "I wa..nt to help you…"

Gibbs smiled, "And we want to help you."

Palmer sighed, "Looks like he got shot twice. Once in the shoulder and-"

"Once through the chest. Piercing his heart," Marine sobbed.

Palmer looked up from the corpse, "How… how did you…"

Gibbs looked at Palmer, "Her dad."

Ducky pushed a strand of Marine's hair out of her face, "My… you are beautiful, my dear."

Gibbs got up from the ground, "Torres help Palmer get the bo… her father into the truck."

"Let's go, my dear," Ducky got up from his seat. "Jethro will take you in his car. That way you feel… better."

"Thank you, Ducky," Marine softly smiled. Ducky tilt his hat down and walked out of the room with McGee and Bishop following close behind.

"Your name is Jethro?" She asked.

Gibbs laughed, "Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Is something wrong with it?"

Marine gave him an assuring smile, "No… no. I like it."

Gibbs grabbed her hand and helped her to her feet, "Good. Now, let's go find your father's killer

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I hope you liked this chapter! Let me know what you think and if you have any requests on what you would like to see in this series. :)


	2. Chapter 2

**I DO NOT OWN CBS! I DO NOT OWN NCIS**

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"Ducky, what do you have?" Gibbs asked as he walked into Autopsy.

"Well, Lieutenant Balker has been shot twice as you already know."

"Was it the cause of death?"

Ducky set his tools down and walked over to the X-rays, "I believe so, but he also has an arm broken and bruises on his body. Probably from being beaten. My guess is that our Lieutenant died from bleeding to death and internal bleeding. Just like Marine said." Ducky turned around to face Gibbs, "Say where is she?"

.…

"Do you want some water, Marine?" Torres asked softly. Marine nodded as Nick sat onto of his desk. He handed her a cup of water. "I'm sorry for your loss."

She smiled gently, "Thank you." Marine took a sip of the water. "I was 5 or 6 years old when my dad divorced my mom."

"I'm guessing that your father won custody?"

"He did." Marine set her cup on the desk, "I'm glad he did too. My mom... she was a drug attic. My dad didn't want me to grow up with a bad influence."

Agent Torres nodded, "Do you think that maybe your mom is behind all of this?"

Marine shrugged, "Maybe, but we haven't heard from her since... 2 years ago."

"Do you remember what any of the men looked like? Abby could do a model of the men," Bishop said from her desk.

"They were wearing all black but the man who sh...shot... was African American with brown eyes."

"Not a lot to go on," McGee sighed.

"What about their voice?" Torres asked.

Marine leaned back in the office car, "Dark and raspy. He had an American accent. He reeked of smoke too. He was muscular like my dad."

"Is there any marine that worked with your father that would like to murder him," Bishop asked softly.

"Now that I think of it... there was someone on my dad's team, Private Bracamonte."

Gibbs walked into the room, "McGee find our suspects address. Bishop look up more information on our man. Torres help Bishop. Marine your with me."

Marine looked at Torres with a questioning look. Nick gave her a goofy grin, "You better hurry before boss gets angry."

...

"Gibbs?" Marine asked as she walked beside him."

"Yes."

"Why did you choose me to come with you?"

Gibbs glanced at her, "You never met Private Bracamonte right?"

"Yes, sir."

"If he was apart of your father's death, you will be able to..."

"Recognize his voice," Marine finished.

Gibbs looked at her with a smile, "Attagirl."

Marine grinned happily as they reached Corporal Kennon. "Corporal Kennon, NCIS." Gibbs flashed his badge, "We would like to ask you some questions about one of your men."

Corporal Kennon looked up and nodded, "Sergeant, I'll be back soon. Keep them working hard."

The sergeant nodded, "Yes sir."

Kennon walked up to Gibbs, "What can I answer for you, sir?"

"Did anyone on Lieutenant Balker's team have any issues with Balker?"

"Not that I know of sir," Corporal Kennon shook his head. Kennon looked over at Marine and smiled, "Nice to see you again Marine."

"You too, sir."

"Why are you here and why do you have a black eye?" He asked gently.

"Her father was murdered and she was tortured," Gibbs growled.

Kennon eyes widened, "I am so sorry."

"It's okay," Marine softly spoke.

"Are you sure no one had an issue with Balker?" Gibbs asked again.

"Now that I think about it... Private Bracamonte had some issues with Lieutenant Balker."

Marine straightened her posture, "Do you know where we can find him?" She looked over at Gibbs to see him nodding with a huge smile. She guessed right.

...

"This is interesting," Bishop muttered under her breath.

"What did you find?" McGee asked as he got up from his seat.

"On Bracamonte's file, it says that he was charged with murder but it was released. But on his file in the marines, it doesn't have that information."

"That is weird," Torres frowned.

...

"Where were you last night around 23:00 and 24:00?" Gibbs asked roughly.

"With my mom at the hospital. She has stage 2 Breast cancer," Private Bracamonte sighed.

"Your mom able to clarify that?"

"Yes, sir," he mumbled.

Marine and Gibbs looked at each other. Marine shook her head sadly. Gibbs sighed, "Thank you for your time, Bracamonte."

...

Gibbs phone began to ring a and everyone looked at each other.

"McGee, you answer it," Torres said quickly.

"What? Why me?"

"You are the senior agent," Bishop laughed.

McGee sighed and walked over to the desk. He picked up the phone, "Hello?"

"I like the quick thinking Nick," Bishop chuckled.

"Thank you," he smiled.

McGee set the phone down and stared at it.

"What was it?" Torres asked.

"Grab your gear and get Ducky. A Navy Officer was killed and he was the son of Balker."

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Let me know what you think in the comments :)! If you have any requests for this series comment or PM me.


	3. Chapter 3

**I DO NOT OWN CBS. I DO NOT OWN NCIS**

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"What do we have?" Gibbs asked. He walked over to McGee. As Gibbs knelt beside McGee, a cold breeze blew. The oak trees in Rock Creek Park swayed with the wind. The sun beat down on his back and the smell of nature made Gibbs at ease.

"Mike Balker, 22 years-old, Ensign." McGee looked at Gibbs, "Say where is Marine?"

"With Abby."

McGee slowly nodded and Gibbs walked over to Ducky. He kneeled beside him, "Time of death?"

"1300 to 1400." Ducky looked at Gibbs, "I believe our men are related." Ducky put his hand on the side of Mike's face and turned it to show the small resemblance. Both of the men had a small birthmark on the left side of their face. "I would definitely say they are father and son." He shook his head with a deep sigh, "Jethro, I hate to say this... But, I believe Marine is in danger."

…

"So, you are down here all the time?" Marine asked. She looked around the room and smiled.

Marine turned to look at Abby, "Does it get lonely?"

"Never. Whenever we have cases Gibbs always comes down and visits."

Marine sat down at Abby's desk. "Abby?"

"Yeah?"

Marine pulled a strand of her auburn hair behind her ear. "What is Gibbs history?"

Abby turned her head to face Marine, "Why do you want to know that?"

"No reason... I'm just wondering..."

Abby raised an eyebrow, "Okay then... Well, what do you want to know?"

"Did he have any children?"

Abby tilted her head, "Why?"

Marine sighed, "I..I... No, it's stupid."

"Come on. You can tell me!"

"I feel like Gibbs is treating me differently than he did with the other kids in these types of cases. A rash amount of Marine's has been kidnapped or murdered who have kids. I feel like I'm getting special treatment."

"What makes you say that?"

Marine put her face into her hands, "My gut."

"Don't tell him I told you but... He had a wife and a daughter that he loved."

Marine looked up from her hands, "What happened to them?"

Abby looked down at her feet, "They got murdered."

Marine's heart dropped, "murdered!?"

Abby nodded, "After that, he got married 4 times but divorced them."

"Wow… I had no… idea." Marine looked down at her hands, "Do you think I'll get killed like my father?"

"Of course not! You have us and we will Protect you," Abby assured the teen with a smile.

"Do you need help?" Marine asked as she got out of her seat.

"No, I'm good but, could you grab that evidence bag on the table behind me and bring it over here."

…

Gibbs sat at his desk staring blankly at his computer. He had no idea what to do. He wanted to help Marine… but how?

"We are at a dead end, boss," McGee finally spoke.

Gibbs looked up from his computer, "I already know that McGee," he growled. He got out of his seat and set his coffee on his desk.

"Are you going to send her down to autopsy to identify the man?" Bishop asked.

"Yes. McGee tell Abby to send Marine down to Autopsy and while I am down there I want you all to find something!" Gibbs walked into the elevator and held his breath. _Please don't be anyone related._ The doors closed in the elevator and began to travel downwards. Gibbs gut churned, and he shook his head, he already knew what the answer was. The elevator stopped, and the doors opened wide. Marine was leaned against the wall with her hands in her blue sweatshirt pockets. She looked up at him and he could see the pain in her eyes. "You ready?" he asked. She only responded with a nod as they walked into autopsy. A black body bag rested on the table with Ducky next to it.

Ducky starred deeply in Gibbs eyes and Gibbs could tell that he was regretting the decision already. "Are you ready, Marine?"

"Yes, sir," she nodded again.

Ducky looked at Gibbs on last time before slowly opening the bag. Gibbs took a deep breath keeping his eyes on the bag. _Please. Please. Please._ Ducky grabbed the edge of the bag as Gibbs held his breath and quickly revealed the face of Mike Balker.

Instantly, Marine began to sob. "No!" she screamed. Gibbs heart dropped as she fell to her knees. Gibbs quickly kneeled beside her and pulled her close to his chest. Her hand tightly grabbed his shirt as she wept. "Bubba," she mumbled between her cries.

Gibbs gripped her tightly holding her close. _I am so sorry,_ he thought. _We both lost too much._

…

Gibbs sat down beside Marine and handed her a cup of water, "Here you go." He was happy he was back at home, but at the same time, he was worried. Marine was too close to her house. What if they come back?

"Thank you, Agent Gibbs," she smiled. "Thank you for staying with me tonight too." Gibbs shook his head, _She will be fine._

"You're welcome," he softly grinned. "Someone had to do it."

"Gibbs?"

"Yes, Marine?"

"I heard about your family. I'm sorry for your loss…"

Gibbs stared at her understanding her pain. He placed his hand on her shoulder and gently squeezed it.

Marine gave him a small smile before looking at her cup.

Gibbs got up from his seat, "Would you like to look at some pictures? Of my wife and daughter?"

Marine looked up with a smile, "Sure."

Gibbs smiled and walked over to the kitchen. He bent down and opened an oak wood cabinet and pulled out a small wooden box. He walked back over to Marine and sat next to her again.

Marine leaned forward and set the cup on the table. Gibbs opened the box and handed her a photo of Shannon and Kelly. Marine placed her fingers on the picture.

"My wife, Shannon, and my daughter, Kelly, were murdered by a drug dealer."

"Kelly looks a lot like me," Marine whispered.

Gibbs looked at the picture in his hands. He was in his marine uniform holding his little girl. Her auburn hair and blue eyes shined with her big smile on her face. He handed her the picture and watched her reaction.

"My dad and I have a photo like this hanging in the house." Marine smiled, "I still remember his story he told me to make me laugh in the photo."

Gibbs smiled, "My daughter would always crack us up when we were down."

"I want to be just like him."

Gibbs got out of his seat, "Stand up."

"Wait why?"

"Stand up on your feet."

Marine stood up, "Is it something I said?"

Gibbs chuckled, "No." Gibbs straightened his posture, "You want to be like your dad, right?"

"Yes, sir," Marine grinned.

"ATTENTION!" On cue, Marine stood up straight with her hands to her side, her feet together, and her head looking straight. Gibbs nodded slowly. "Good form." He walked to the side of her "Do you know how to move around?"

Marine kept a straight face, "Not well, sir."

"I'll do it with you then." Gibbs copied Marine's stance, "Ready?" Marine nodded. "LEFT FACE!" They both turned to the left. Gibbs looked over at Marine, "You are a little sloppy, but we can fix that. Now let me show you how to do About Face."

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I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please let me know what you think or if you have a request for future chapters! I want to shout out NCIS FoReVR for helping me edit my chapter and make it better :).


	4. Chapter 4

**I DO NOT OWN CBS! I DO NOT OWN NCIS!**

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Chapter 4

 _ **Bold - Flashback**_

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" ** _Where is it?" The man in the black mask screamed as he slashed the side of Captain Balker's face. A long groan left his lips._**

 ** _Marine tried to scream, but the black cloth around her mouth prevented it. The tears rushed down her face like a river as she watched them hit her father again. "WHERE IS IT!?" The man screamed again._**

 ** _The man growled and put his gloved hands around her father's neck. Marine watched helplessly as the man's grip tightened. Marine's father gasped for air, "I... will... ne...never tell..."_**

 ** _"You fool!" The man let go of her father's neck and grabbed the knife._**

 ** _Another man grabbed Marine's brown chair, "Why don't we try it a different way to make him talk, boss?" The man moves his face closer to her. His green eyes flamed_** ** _and his evil grin made Marine scream again._**

" ** _Tom! Knock it off!"_**

" ** _Tom! Knock it off!"_**

" ** _Tom!"_**

" ** _To-"_**

Marine screamed as she opened her eyes.

"Woah, you alright?" Agent Torres asked as he quickly kneeled beside her.

Marine looked around the office trying to catch her breath. Gibbs was out of his seat, his gaze staring deeply at her, Special Agent Bishop has wide eyes, and McGee had a shocked look on his face.

"I know one of the men's names! Tom!"

Special Agent McGee raised an eyebrow, "Just Tom? That doesn't help much."

Marine closed her eyes and thought hard. There had to be something else. "His arm... It had a tattoo!"

"What was on it?" Bishop asked.

 ** _The man sneered, "I'll get you next time." He turned around and showed a dark skull on the back of his tan arm._**

Marine blinked her eyes open, "A black Skull. It was on the back of his left arm."

...

"Abby, you better tell me you have something," Gibbs growled as he marched into the room.

He handed her a large drink and Abby smiled, "Thank you, Gibbs."

"Did you find our man?"

"Well, the search for our Tom was very, very difficult, especially since we were going off of memory and-"

"Did you find him?" Gibbs scowled and crossed his arms over his chest.

Abby tapped a key on her keyboard, "Yes, I did." Gibbs turned his head from Abby to the television screen. "Petty Officer Tom Wilber."

Gibbs nodded and began to walk out of the room, "Thanks, Abs."

...

"Bishop, I need you to find where Tom Wilber is. McGee search his phone records to see if he contacted any of our men before they were murdered. Torres, help McGee."

"Yes, boss," they all said together. Gibbs sat down at his desk and began to type on the computer.

Marine got up from her seat and walked over to Gibbs desk, "Gibbs?"

He looked up from his computer and looked at her, "Yes?"

"I feel like... my father and brother were both murdered... because they have something."

Gibbs tilted his head, "Like what?"

"Something valuable, probably, sir." Marine sighed, "I want to help you more but... my dad didn't tell me everything. He kept some things to himself. Some things he said I would have to wait till I'm older."

Gibbs nodded his head slowly.

"Boss?" McGee asked as he walked up next to Marine.

"What is it, McGee?" Gibbs asked.

"I found Tom's address and his last phone call was to Marine's brother."

Gibbs threw the truck keys at McGee, "Get the truck. Bishop stay behind with Marine."

Marine glanced at Bishop to see her put her gun away. Gibbs rushed past Marine as he put his gun in his holster. Marine sighed while she watched the men run out of the office. She walked over to McGee's desk and sat on it. "My father... was young when he married my mom." Special Agent Bishop looked up from her desk. "They were married for almost 30 years when they divorced. I never thought addiction would be way better than a family. I guess my mom thought our life wasn't good enough."

Bishop looked up at Marine, "I know it's hard."

"He was the only one that I had in my life that..."

"Understood you?"

"Cared for me," Marine sighed. "Now he is gone."

...

"I thought my place was messy," Nick grumbled as he stepped over a pile of dirty clothes.

Gibbs looked around the room. It was going to take forever to find something **related** to the case with a mess like this. Clothes were thrown everywhere, with beer bottles, mud on the floor. "I've seen worse," he grumbled.

Nick grabbed a shirt with the tips of his fingers. "It will take weeks to search through all this."

Gibbs felt his gut churn as he looked at the door. The silver knob began to turn.

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I hope you liked the Chapter :) . Please let me know what you think... and also a thank you to NCIS FoReVR


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